Attorney General of the Gambia
| Attorney General of the Gambia | |
|---|---|
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| Style | The Honourable |
| Member of | Gambian Cabinet |
| Residence |
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| Appointer | President of the Gambia |
| Deputy | Solicitor General |
The Attorney General of the Gambia is a cabinet-level position in the Gambia responsible for providing legal advice to the Gambian government and appearing on its behalf in the courts of the land. The post is often held in conjunction with that of Minister of Justice, who is the head of the Ministry of Justice and responsible for legal affairs. The current Attorney General is Ba Tambadou, a former attorney with the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
According to Section 71 (2) of the Constitution of the Gambia, the Attorney General must be a "legal practitioner of at least five years standing" at the Gambian bar.
Traditionally, the role of Attorney General was a civil service role and an ex officio member of the cabinet. However, when the portfolio of Minister of Justice came into being in 1968, it was seen as prudent to combine the two roles. The Attorney General is the official leader of both the public and private bar and has precedence over all over all other legal practitioners.
Section 72 (2) of the Constitution states that the Attorney General "shall be the principal legal adviser to the Government and shall have the right of audience in all courts in the Gambia." Section 84 (1) states that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) must seek approval from the Attorney General before initiating proceedings, and Section 85 (4) states that the DPP is subject "to the direction or control" of the Attorney General.
Section 82 (2) says that the Attorney General shall automatically be granted a position on any committee on the exercise of the prerogative of mercy. Section 137 A (4) grants the Attorney General a position on the Cadi Appeals Selection Committee.
The principal assistant to the Attorney General is the Solicitor General, who is authorised to deputise for the Attorney General when required. Also, the Director of Public Prosecutions can exercise some of the Attorney General's powers, most notably discontinuing court cases (nolle prosequi). There are six directorates in the Ministry of Justice that the Attorney General, as Minister of Justice, also has control over.
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Wikipedia